Tales from the Normandy
by AmityN7
Summary: A collection of short character interactions all set aboard the Normandy with an emphasis on Jack/Miranda and FemShep/Liara. Now updated with new chapter "Miranda and Shepard: Goodbye"
1. Miranda Lawson: Night Cycle

**WARNING- This story is for mature readers ONLY! There is gonna be a lot of adult material including heavy lesbian themes. **

It was well into the night cycle for the Normandy SR2. Some Crew-members had begun to fall asleep in their bunks but not Miranda Lawson. Currently Lawson was sat behind her desk typing away at a mission report for the Illusive Man. She glanced at the time and realized she should be tired given how early she'd started her day. But she wasn't. The Cerberus officer was wide awake and desperately trying to distract her thoughts with busy work. The last thing she wanted was to fall asleep. Ever since Shepard had brought that disgusting convict aboard Miranda had been on edge.

She told herself it was concern for the mission and that Jack was a liability. Deep down Miranda knew her issue with the biotic had nothing to do with the mission. Almost every time Miranda had fallen asleep since bringing Jack aboard she had been having the most vivid and down right confusing dreams of her life that rendered her unbearably horny when she woke in the mornings. And every one of them featured Jack.

Lawson had always felt an attraction to her own gender but no one in particular. But she had been with men in the past. Sure it never exactly felt right or very satisfying but maybe that meant she hadn't been with the right man. Ever since she was a little girl her father had told her she would marry a suitably matched man who could measure up to her genes so she could have a child and continue his bloody legacy. She couldn't care less about Henry Lawson's legacy anymore but having children had always been a dream of hers. Most of her sexual encounters of recent had been attempts to realize that dream. Those attempts ceased when her doctor informed her that in spite of her perfect genes she would never have a child of her own. Men had lost what little appeal they had to her since that day.

But Miranda was no fool. She didn't pretend that the Illusive Man kept her around for only her brain. While thankfully the man hadn't made any solid advances Miranda doubted coming out of the closet would bolster her position in Cerberus. She remembered a lesson she was taught long ago, sex appeal was the most powerful weapon a woman like her possessed. And manipulating men with her looks was almost too easy, even the Illusive Man had fallen prey to her tricks in the past. But using other's attraction to her was not how she got to where she was. Miranda wasn't shy to admit that by all accounts she was a genius. Top of her class in every one of the high end schools her father shipped her away to. And she was more than able to handle herself in a fight. Using her looks to her advantage was simply the icing on the cake.

But none of that is what upset her now. If she was going to be attracted to another woman surely it would be someone better than Jack. Miranda had met many people in her life but non had the impact the convict had on her. And her dreams couldn't lie. Nor could the building need between her legs every time she pictured the woman.

Without thought Miranda inched her hand between her thighs. Quickly she realized what she was doing and withdrew it.

"Dammit." she said to herself as she closed her terminal. How could she fix this? Perhaps if she visited the woman in that dark hole she called her quarters she would see how unattractive the biotic was and finally end these foolish thoughts. Or maybe she was making an excuse to see Jack. Miranda didn't bother giving the latter any thought and began to make her way down to the sub deck.

As her high heeled boots clicked down the stairs on her decent down to Jack's quarters Miranda felt butterflies fill her stomach. She quickly composed herself and cupped her hands behind her back and put a stern look on her face before turning the corner.

Jack grunted with effort as she brought her head between her knees as the biotic rapidly performed sit-ups. She looked Miranda up and down and rolled her eyes. "What the fuck do you want Cerberus bitch?"

"I came to ensure you were not tampering with any vital ship systems in the sub deck." She lied while placing a hand on her hip.

Jack chuckled. "I'll do whatever the fuck I want."

Miranda bit her lip as she watched Jack's stomach muscles tighten as the biotic continued her work out. A fine layer of sweat coated Jack's toned tattooed body and Lawson couldn't pry her eyes away from Jack's muscles as they flexed. Miranda pressed her thighs together as she felt her panties moisten. She swallowed hard before opening her lips to speak again but found no words.

Jack got to her feet and made her way over to the Cerberus officer making sure to invade her personal space. "Get out of here now Princess or I'll make you regret ever coming down here."

An image popped into Miranda's head of what Jack could mean by that. She pictured being taken by the woman and before she could stop she felt herself growing even more wet and soaking her panties through. She let out soft whimper she couldn't keep inside and her face turned bright red.

Jack arched an eyebrow and took a step back. "What the fuck is wrong with you?"

"Just remember to behave. Or I promise you you'll find yourself back in that cell where you belong and this time you'll stay there. Don't make me regret taking you aboard more than I already do."

"Fuck you." Jack spat. "You think you're better than me precious? Why don't you prove it." The biotic shoved Miranda and while the attack angered Lawson, Jack's touch seemed to almost burn.

"It's hardly my own opinion Jack. It's just a fact that I'm superior. And if you touch me again I will be forced to prove it."

Jack laughed. "Aww look at you trying to act tough. It's adorable." Miranda's eyes sunk to Jack's barely covered breasts. Jack shoved her again. "You eyeballing my tits?"

"What tits?"

"That's it!" Jack shouted as she pulled a fist back and threw it with all her might at Miranda. Lawson easily dodged the attack and seized her inked arm. Gripping it tight Miranda had to stop herself from admiring Jack's muscular arms as the biotic tried to tug free. "Let go you bitch!" She screamed as she pulled all her weight away from Miranda. That's when Lawson did as she asked and released her hold sending Jack flopping backwards to the floor.

"That looked like it hurt."

"You don't know shit about pain." Jack said as she rose to her feet rubbing the back of her bald head. "Shepard wouldn't appreciate me ripping your genetically superior ass in two. So fuck it. Just leave me alone for the rest of this damn mission."

"Sounds perfect." Miranda said.

Lawson casually strolled back up the stairs and once she was out of sight of the convict began to quickly make her way back into the elevator. Her heart was racing and she was beginning to sweat. She couldn't deny how aroused she was. But she wasn't ready to surrender to these feelings without concrete proof. She rode the elevator to the CIC. Perhaps a visit to Jacob would sort this out.

She made her way into the Armory and found Jacob fiddling with a rifle part. He lifted his head and smiled at Miranda. "Doesn't anyone go to be bed on this ship?"

Miranda forced a smile. "I suppose not."

"What can I do for you Miranda?"

"I came by to...talk."

Jacob paused and stared with confusion at the woman. "You never want to talk."

Miranda forced herself to examine the man's body. She ran her eyes over his impressive physique and even took a moment to inspect his ass. Nothing happened. She needed to do something more drastic. She moved in close to Jacob and before the man could open his mouth again she leaned in and kissed him. Jacob was quick to accept the kiss and wrapped his arms around Lawson's body. That's when Miranda gently pushed him away and wiped her lips. It was horrible kissing him, absolutely horrible.

"I apologize Jacob." Miranda said.

"Uh...no need. Are you alright Miranda?"

"Please don't tell anyone about this."

"Of course." Jacob agreed and he opened his mouth to say something more but Miranda turned and scurried out of the armory.

Miranda buried her face in her hands. She made her way back down to her office and sat back in her office chair. "Screw it." if she couldn't shake this she may as well embrace it. There couldn't be any harm in exploring the possibility. The misguided resentment to homosexuals had almost entirely ended decades ago. If Miranda was gay, it was well past time for her to find out. "Edi." She called out.

"Yes Operative Lawson." The AI answered.

"Cut all surveillance to my quarters."

"Will that be all?"

"Patch the sub deck surveillance feed to my private terminal."

The AI did as asked. The image of Jack continuing her work out in her quarters popped up on her terminal screen. Spying on the woman didn't make Miranda feel guilty. Why she was spying on her did. Lawson licked her lips. "I'll do it just once to get it out of my system." She told herself. Quickly she found the zipper on her catsuit and peeled herself out of it leaving her sitting in her office chair in just her panties and bra. Nervously she softly laid her hand over her pussy and felt the soaked material of her panties. She reached back and unhooked her bra and let her ample breasts spill out, bringing up her free hand to cup over her right breast. She dug her hand inside her panties and wasted no time getting work.

At first she tried to not focus on the feed of Jack's workout and tried to picture Jacob again. That effort was quickly abandoned and Miranda reluctantly began to focus on Jack. Miranda's toes curled as she rubbed her clit and let out a low moan of pleasure. She slipped two fingers inside herself and pictured Jack's hand in their stead. Her strong tattooed arms thrusting her fingers inside Lawson. "Oh god!" She cried out.

Another scene came to her mind of Jack burying her bald head between her legs. Slowly swiping her tongue over her clit. What was it about this unpleasant woman that drove Miranda crazy? She didn't know for certain but something about her made Miranda want to surrender completely to her will. She thought of the ways Jack might take her; rough, uncaring and fast. She was always in control but the idea of being completely dominated by Jack made Lawson hotter than ever before.

Lawson bit down on her plump lower lip and sucked in a short breath. She began tweaking one nipple as she came crashing towards climax. She shut her eyes hard and couldn't help herself from crying out loud as she came, soaking her hand and office chair as she did. She didn't give herself any time to catch her breath before she thrusted her fingers back inside herself, rubbing her palm over her swollen clit. Lawson couldn't think clearly anymore, she had never needed someone else so badly. Part of her wanted to march back down to the sub deck and demand that Jack fuck her senseless right there on the cold metal floor.

A second wave of pleasure began to rise up within her and Miranda muffled a scream of delight into her arm as she came again.

Miranda's head dipped forward and her raven black hair hung down as her chest heaved. But her fingers didn't stop going to work. She threw her head back and her heart skipped a beat as she heard her door swoosh open. In her haste she had forgotten to lock her quarters.

Miranda looked up mortified at Commander Shepard who stared back with an equally confused and almost aroused look upon her face. Miranda cupped her hands over her nipples and turned her back to her Commander. Jane's face turned bright red as did Miranda's and Shepard was first to speak up.

"Um... Excuse me Miranda. I...nevermind." Shepard said before turning the other way and closing Miranda's door behind her.

Miranda laid face down on her desk. "Oh god." She groaned. She had never been more embarrassed. But even that couldn't take away from the immense pleasure she felt. More than anything she wanted to continue but her libido was nearly completely drained from the embarrassment of being seen fingering herself by Shepard.

She threw on some fresh clothes and made her way out into the mess but Shepard was nowhere to be seen. However she did see Jack making her way into the room. She must have finished her workout while Miranda was getting dressed.

The woman had a nasty looking wound on the back of her head from where she must have struck it after Miranda dropped her. Miranda guessed she had come up here to see the doctor.

Lawson sighed. It wasn't Jack's fault that she was attracted to her and bullying the girl wasn't right. Miranda figured she should at least try and make things right. She made her way over to the convict.

"Fuck me. What?!" Jack spat.

"How's your head?" She asked with a strange mixture of sarcasm and sincerity in her voice.

Jack shoved her away. "I don't want to hear your bullshit. I've met chicks like you in the past and you're all the same. You think you're better than everyone else because you got a pair of big tits and a pretty face. But you Cheerleader, shit you take the mother fucking trophy. You think cause I've been locked up I don't have just as much to offer as you? Why cause I can't prance around in high-heeled boots and wear a skin-tight uniform? I bet your Illusive Man picked that pretty little number out himself didn't he. You're so ridiculous it's almost sad. Why don't you look at yourself before you go around judging other people? You might be surprised to find that acting like a smug bitch doesn't actually make you better than anyone."

Miranda sat in a stunned silence. "You're unbelievable. I didn't get to where I am just because of my bloody tits and I sure as hell don't need any lip about how I dress from you. I worked my ass off. You don't know the first thing about me."

"I know everything I need to Princess." Jack began to advance towards her with biotics flaring before a turian stepped between them.

"Alright ladies, That's enough!" Garrus said.

"Bite me Garrus." Jack said and stormed off back to her quarters.

Miranda groaned. "I didn't need your help turian."

Garrus crossed his arms. "You're welcome." he said to her back as she left him alone in the mess on her way back into her room.

Miranda dropped on to her bed. Nobody had ever talked like that to her. While she might pretend like it didn't hurt her feelings she knew deep down it did. But what stung the most is no matter how attracted Miranda was to Jack the convict would never feel the same way. Lawson got undressed and settled under her covers. If she couldn't be with her what was the point in coming out now? To try to woo Shepard? Miranda laughed. Jane was an attractive woman sure but Commander Shepard wasn't really her type. So Miranda just accepted that she had another secret to carry among hundreds of others. Perhaps one day when the Reapers were dealt with, If the Reapers could be dealt with. Miranda stopped such a ridiculous thought. As if she and Jack could be in a relationship. Instead Miranda tried to accept the fact that it would be best for her to do what she was on this ship to do. And afterwards forget all about the woman. It wasn't as if she would ever see her again. And that thought both saddened and comforted her as she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

**Notes- **So this is to make up for Shepard and Liara Versus the High School Reunion getting delayed a bit. I was really on the fence about posting this as sexually explicit stuff usually isn't my style but I also really wanted to try my best at an explanation as to why Miranda was not a romance option for FemShep if she's gay. I always follow canon so this was my reasoning behind why she and FemShep can't hook up.

I've also announced that my other story "The Veiled Asari" is going to be my nano so ideally you can expect a chapter almost every single day in that story as I try and reach 50,000 words by the end of the month.

Special thanks to ReavansMask for helping me out with this one-shot. I suggest you check out their stories because "Ashara Shepard: The Fourth Life" is one of my favorite fics.


	2. Jack and Shepard: Girl Talk

**2185- Normandy SR2 **

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Jack spat with her arms crossed.

"I'm not crazy about it either, Jack." Shepard said. "But the Illusive Man is insisting."

"And you just do what Cerberus tells you to?"

Jane narrowed her eyes. "No."

"Then don't do it."

The Commander shrugged and leaned against the steel walls of the subdeck. "It might help with morale. Some of the crew is getting restless."

"Pussies." Jack muttered and laid down on her cot.

"That's helpful, Jack. Thanks."

"Why are you down here asking me for advice? I thought you were buddy buddy with Garrus. So why the fuck aren't you bugging him?"

Jane sighed. "Garrus is a good friend. But he isn't much of a talker. Especially lately."

"So you come to me?" Jack chuckled.

"Full disclosure, I could use a female friend right now."

Jack sat up and arched an eyebrow. "Jesus, Shepard, do I look like your shrink? You need a girlfriend go see the Cerberus bitch."

"Things between me and Miranda have been awkward ever since..." Jane stopped herself and fought the urge to cover her mouth for almost slipping up.

The convict shot to her feet. "Oh shit. You got dirt on the Cheerleader? Spill it."

"I didn't say that."

"I'll listen to your bullshit if you tell me."

Shepard sat down on Jack's cot. "Fine. But you have to promise not to tell anyone else."

"Fine."

"You have to promise."

"You want me to fucking pinkie swear?"

Jane smirked. "I saw...Well I caught Miranda fingering herself last week."

Jack burst into a fit of laughter. "No shit!? That is fucking amazing. What did you do?"

"I apologized and ran away. She was in her office. It's not like you're not masturbating down here too Jack."

Jack shook her head. "I'm not. Why? what the hell are you doing in that fancy cabin of yours?"

Shepard blushed. "Uh, nothing."

The biotic grinned. "Uh Huh. Alright, screw it I don't got anything else going on. What's on your mind girl scout?"

"It's Liara."

"Who?"

"The asari we met with on Illium yesterday."

"Oh the one you made out with. Yeah, never thought you'd be one to fuck an asari."

"Well we were kind of together a few years back. And now she doesn't even seem to care."

"Fuck her. Relationships make you weak."

"You've never cared about someone else, Jack?"

Jack charged her finger and twirled it around admiring the way the blue light streamed behind. "Never said that."

"Well I care about her. And it was only a few weeks for me since we were together but for her it's been two years. She moved on."

"I don't remember her saying she moved on." Jack said. "I remember her shoving her tongue down your throat."

"Why wouldn't she come with me then?"

The convict shrugged. "How the hell should I know? All i'm saying is tongue fucking isn't usually a sign somebody moved on."

Jane smiled. "Maybe you're right. Thanks Jack."

The biotic rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Are we done with this sappy bullshit?"

Jane got to her feet. "You're off the hook. For now."

"Why do you keep coming down here for real?"

"What do you mean?"

"Every day your down here. You trying to fix me? Let me save you the trouble, I'm not in a market for a friend. Or a girlfriend."

Shepard smirked. "I like you, Jack. You're honest. And you're kinda cute." she teased.

Jack groaned. "I am not cute!"

"Keep telling yourself that." Jane chuckled and walked towards the stairs.

Jack stole a glance at the Commander's ass as she walked away.

Shepard called the elevator and froze when the door opened and she caught Miranda inside riding up from the shuttle bay. Miranda didn't meet her eyes she just strolled to the other side of the lift when Jane walked inside.

"Miranda." she greeted her and hit her cabin level on the lift display.

"Shepard." Miranda crossed her arms and tapped her high heeled boot.

The Commander nervously cleared her throat. "These lifts sure take awhile." she said awkwardly.

"Okay, about the other day." Miranda began. "It was unprofessional and I apologize."

"It's alright, Miranda. You're not the only person on this ship who's lonely. Let's just not talk about it. Ever."

"I ask that you don't mention it to anyone else. Especially Jack."

Jane looked to her feet. "Of course."

**Notes- These are just writing practice. Since I'm finishing Veiled Asari I'm getting familiar again with writing the crew. I might do more of these short little interactions on this story. **


	3. The Crew Gets Wasted

"Terminals!" She shouted as she took another shot of Zaeed's whiskey. "She wanted me to hack terminals!" Shepard repeated as she pointed to her glass for a refill.

Zaeed complied. "Women." Jane glared at him. "Breaks my guddamn heart."

"Maybe she needs time. You were dead for two years, Shepard. I know Liara, after the Normandy was destroyed she was a wreck." Tali said, being the only dextro in the mess hall table meant she was the only sober one too.

"Maybe she just doesn't care about me." Shepard said, her words slurring before she swallowed another shot.

Jack groaned. "You know I thought you'd be a fun drunk, Shepard."

"W-We all have our... misconceptions." Shepard slurred.

"What does the asari know?" Zaeed barked as he took a puff from his cigar. "Never bedded blue myself. I don't trust anyone who can outlive me ten times over."

Shepard went to pour herself another shot and found the bottle empty. "We need more...stuff."

"Don't worry. I brought back up." Zaeed said and plopped a fresh bottle on the table and unscrewed the cap before shakily pouring everyone a drink.

Suddenly EDI spoke up. "Shepard, your blood alcohol level is 0.181. I recommend you stop drinking."

"Shut up EDI!" Shepard barked and slumped forward. "The whole damn galaxy is riding on my shoulders again, the Alliance doesn't want me, I have to work with Cerberus, I'm on a suicide mission and to top it all off Liara doesn't want anything to do with me. I think i've earned a few drinks."

"Here here." Zaeed agreed and finished off his highball.

"For fuck's sake, Shepard. This is pathetic. So she had you hack some terminals! How the hell does that mean she doesn't care about you?" Jack shouted with the obvious influence of alcohol in her voice.

"I can't believe I'm gonna say this but I agree with Jack." Tali said.

The XO's office door swooshed open and Miranda Lawson strolled out. "What the hell is going on out here?" she asked as she approached the table and put one hand on her hip.

"Little R&R." Shepard slurred.

"God, are you drunk, Shepard?"

"Just a little..."

Miranda snatched the empty bottle from the table. "That's perfect. How many bloody drinks have you had?"

"Shut up Cheerleader! The woman wants to get shitfaced. Let her get shitfaced." Jack spat.

Lawson glared at her. "Need I remind you that you are in charge of a mission of galactic importance, Shepard? The Collectors aren't going to wait around for you to sober up!"

Jack got to her feet. "Don't be upset we didn't invite you, Princess. I would say it's because of that stick you have up that big ass of yours. But I think the Commander feels a little uncomfortable after seeing you play with yourself."

Miranda's face turned bright red. "I...I don't know what you're talking about!"

"Are the Collectors gonna wait around for you to finger yourself?"

"You're repulsive. The Illusive Man will hear about this."

"Yeah go and tattle Cerberus bitch. God forbid a few adults have a few drinks. What's the matter Princess? Can't hold your liquor and join the big kids?"

Miranda had heard enough. She grabbed Zaeed's second bottle and brought it to her lips before she began chugging it. Jack's eyes widened as did the rest of the tables.

"That's a guddamn 2163!" Zaeed protested.

Lawson was certain her superior genetics would give her an edge but when she had finished chugging only about half the bottle of whiskey remained and she immediately regretted her bravado. She gagged a bit and handed the bottle to Jack who looked completely stunned.

"Holy shit! You might be a bitch but that was fucking impressive." Jack admitted.

"A thing of beauty." Zaeed agreed.

Shepard had now sat back up. "I'm impressed."

Tali shook her head. "You humans drink way too much alcohol."

Miranda burped. "Perhaps I won't be telling the Illusive Man." he voice was already wavering.

Jack laughed. "I already like drunk you better."

Lawson sat down and buried her face in her hands. "W-What are we talking about?"

"Liara." Shepard muttered.

"Maybe we should change the subject." Tali offered.

Shepard looked into Tali's glowing eyes behind her mask. "She broke my heart Tali! You know what? I'm gonna call her." She opened her omni-tool.

Tali gently grabbed Jane's arm. "That might not be a good idea."

Jack nodded her head. "The quarian's right. Because it's a great fucking idea!"

Zaeed chuckled and took another puff of his cigar. "Never thought I'd get to see Commander Shepard drunk dial her ex-girlfriend."

"I vote yes." Miranda was now visibly drunk and her eyes were half open.

Jane wiggled her arm free and dialed Liara. "I need to hear her voice."

"Keelah." Tali muttered.

Miranda propped her head up on one hand. "Put it on speaker."

Suddenly the call connected and Liara's soft voice came from Shepard's device. "H-Hello?"

"Liara!" Shepard shouted and Zaeed and Jack drunkenly laughed.

"Shepard? Are you alright? It's 3 in the morning here."

"I need to know why you don't care about me!" Shepard cried.

Tali spoke up. "Liara, Shepard is not in her right mind at the moment."

"Tali? What's going on?"

Shepard took another drink. "You broke my heart!"

"Shepard, we're not discussing this now."

"Why not?" Jack asked.

"Who is that?"

"Liara, please hang up." Tali pleaded.

Shepard shot up. "No! Don't hang up! I need to hear your voice."

"I'm sorry Shepard. But I'm not talking about this when you're like this." Liara hung up.

Jane looked devastated. "Plenty of fish in the sea." Zaeed said breaking the silence.

They all jumped when Miranda slumped forward and her face landed on the table. "I think the Cheerleader is fucked up." Jack said.

"EDI?" Miranda called out.

"Yes Operative Lawson?"

"Where is the best place to throw up?"

"I recommend the women's rest room."

Miranda hiccuped. "Too far." she scrambled to the kitchen sink and hurled.

Jack was laughing hysterically as Tali put a comforting hand on Shepard's shoulder. "It's alright Shepard."

"I think I'm gonna call it a night." Shepard said and rose to her feet. She took three steps before she tripped over herself and crashed to the ground. "Ow."

Tali rushed to her aid and lifted her to the ground, wrapping her arm around her drunken captain. "Let's get you to bed, Shepard."

"Bed...would be good."

Tali helped Shepard up to her cabin. "Why'd she move on, Tali?"

Tali sighed. "Shepard, she didn't move on."

"She did."

"Then why did she ask me to the same question about you when we were last on Illium?"

"She did?"

"She made me promise not to tell you. Liara, still cares about you."

Jane hugged the quarian, perhaps a little too hard. "I love you Tali!" she planted a sloppy kiss on the top half of Tali's visor.

"You should get some rest, Shepard. Something tells me you have an apology to make tomorrow."

Shepard flopped down on top of her bed and fumbled with her pants. She kicked them down to her knees before they got caught and with a groan Tali helped her out of them before Shepard had passed out completely.

"Keelah." She said to herself and shut off the lights as she took the lift down to engineering.

* * *

**Notes- Okay ****tomorrow I start on the final Veiled Asari chapters. For some reason I felt like writing the crew a lot today. Sorry. Hopefully it was enjoyable. **


	4. Miranda Lawson: The Hangover

When Miranda opens her eyes she immediately feels the need to shut them again. The light burns and her head feels like it has been hit with a club repeatedly. She feels something on the corner of her lip and wipes it away. Vomit. Lovely. She remembered now why she didn't like to drink much. That's about all she remembers.

Miranda bites the bullet and opens her stinging eyes and sits up. That's when she feels the free shifting of weight on her chest and looks down to find herself completely naked. Instinctively she covers her breasts up with the blanket and takes a look around her cabin. Her underwear is strewn about with her bra laying on the black and white couch and her panties on her desk. Her catsuit is in a heap on the floor.

"Bloody hell." She mutters to herself. What the hell had happened last night? Everything was a blur after Shepard left. There is a few fleeting memories swirling in her head, she recalls making the terrible decision to continue drinking after puking in the mess hall kitchen sink. She remembers Jack being by her side. And she remembers kissing the convict as Jack slid her hand inside her panties. "Oh God." Miranda groaned and buried her face in her hands. Had she and Jack had sex last night? Or had it been another one of her vivid dreams about the woman. It was impossible to say. The whole evening was lost in a drunken haze.

She throws the covers off and steps out of bed. Her hips sway as she makes her way to her dresser, breasts freely bouncing before she can slip into a fresh set of bra and panties. She zips up her black catsuit and goes to the mirror hidden in her wall compartment that houses her private items. She takes a good deal of time getting her raven colored hair right and exhales. If she and Jack made love would the biotic remember? Part of her wants to ask EDI what happened but she's terrified of what she'll learn so she decides against it. Jack was easily as drunk as she was last night. She probably wouldn't remember. But then she remembers two people who might. The only sober souls she encountered that evening. Tali Zorah and Garrus had been around her at some point.

She figures she can get to the bottom of this herself and heads to see the turian in the main battery first. The door swooshes open and Garrus turns, his eyes dropping when he sees it's Lawson who has come to visit him. "Miranda." He greets her.

No sign he's hiding a secret she notes. "Turian, I came by to see if you're performing your duties to a satisfactory level." She lied.

Garrus chuckles. "I have a name Miranda. Why don't you use it?"

"Not here to make friends...Garrus."

"Oh you were the picture of professionalism last night." He jokes.

_So he does know something_, she thinks. "We all need to unwind."

"Is that what you humans call it? Well I suppose there was an certain grace to the way you threw up on Grunt."

"Grunt?"

"Spirits, you don't remember do you?"

A disgusting thought invades her mind for a moment that Grunt may have been her partner last night. "Not entirely." She admits.

"Well I'm not going to be much help to you. After I stopped Grunt from going blood rage on you, You're welcome by the way. I left you, Tali and...Jack I think."

"Jack?" Miranda says a little too eagerly.

Garrus turned to fiddle with his console. "Yeah I remember because you two weren't trying to rip each others heads off for once. Are we done here because I'm in the middle of some calibrations."

"We're done." Miranda said coldly and left the main battery.

Great, so Jack was with her and they were getting along. _Stupid Miranda, very stupid. You can't allow your childish crush to impact your mission. _She reminds herself. She worries about what the Illusive Man will say to her. Especially if she and Jack had been intimate. She'd spent too much time subtly manipulating the man with sex appeal to lose all that progress now if she was found to be gay. The Illusive Man was brilliant but he was still a _Man_. Once he knew she was off the table she worried where her position in Cerberus may end up. She's sacrificed too much, given too much for this organization for a drunken one night stand to ruin it now.

She needs to see Tali, and avoid Jack at all costs. She strides past the Mess Hall and is distracted by a strangely weak sounding Commander greeting her from the table as she moves by it. "Shepard?" She asks and turns to face her Commander. "Not feeling well today? Perhaps you should see the doctor we have a big day ahead. The crew is still not nearly ready for..."

"Miranda, I get that I'm in charge here. But I'm also still just a woman."

"We didn't bring you back so you could be just a woman. We brought you back to be Commander Shepard."

"Well sometimes Commander Shepard has bad days. And even worse hangovers. So if you don't mind stowing the attitude I'd appreciate it." She snaps in a husky voice.

Miranda is impressed. Shepard rarely loses her temper with her. She was beginning to worry she was too soft to be up to the task. "Understood Commander." she says back cooly.

Shepard gestures to the seat across from her. "Sorry. I don't want us to be at each others throats. We need to work together and trust each other if we want to have any hope of pulling this off."

"Just do your job right and we'll be fine. I'm not looking for a friend, Shepard."

"Clearly." Shepard responds. "You know having a friend isn't the worst thing in the galaxy."

"I don't like relying on anyone."

"All I'm saying is if you want to talk sometime my head doesn't feel like I got on the bad side of a krogan I'm here."

Miranda rolls her eyes. "Noted." she says and strolls away. Shepard is ridiculous. The "Hero of the Citadel" spends too much time worried about making friends for Miranda to be comfortable but she has to trust Shepard is up to the task. She saved the galaxy from the Reapers once before so perhaps there is a thing or two Miranda could learn from her even if she hates to admit it.

She catches the lift down to engineering. Hopefully the quarian can shed some more light on the evening. As she makes her way to the engine room she spots Grunt heading out of his quarters. The krogan glares at her and growls. Miranda scurried inside the engine room.

"All I'm saying is Shepard is a pretty lass." Donnelly is in the middle of his sentence and Gabby doesn't look thrilled as usual. Miranda doesn't understand how someone as undisciplined as Ken Donnelly has found himself in Cerberus but the pair has kept the ship flying so far.

"Just stop right there Kenneth." Gabby advises.

"I hear she prefers the lassies herself. Maybe you and her could..." He stops when he notices Miranda and snaps her a salute. "Operative Lawson." he greets her.

Gabby can't help but smile. "What can we do for you mam?"

"Nothing. Get back to work." she tells them and she notices Tali is down by the drive core. She walks up behind her and clears her throat.

Tali groans. "What do you want?"

"Excuse me?"

"I asked what you wanted? Perhaps Cerberus should teach it's people to listen before they teach them to plant bombs on the Migrate Fleet."

Miranda is tired of her bringing that up every time they interact but being hostile with her will not get her what she wants. "I came by to talk."

The quarian laughs. "Talk? What about?"

Miranda smiles. If Tali knew she and Jack had been together she would have recognized it by now. "Never mind. I won't bother you any further."

"Please don't." Tali says and turns back to the drive core's console.

As Miranda walks back by Gabby and Ken she notices that Donnelly is now silent and she makes here way out of the engine room. Miranda sighs and realizes there is only one more person she should visit. She glares down the subdeck stairwell. Swallowing hard she starts down and rounds the corner to find Jack staring at a datapad. The convict looks up from her bunk. "Goodie. If it isn't my favorite Cerberus Bitch."

"I came by to talk." Miranda says and stops herself from admiring the beauty of the roguishwoman.

Jack laughed. "Bet you don't have a fucking clue what happened last night do you?"

"No I don't." Miranda admits.

Jack smiled and turned her attention back to her datapad. "How frustrating for you. And how not my fucking problem."

"What did we do last night?"

Jack looked back up at her. "We?" she shrugs. "Dunno. Got fucked up and you puked on Grunt. Don't remember anything else. Don't think it changes shit between us."

"That's all?"

Jack sat up. "Why are you so concerned about it?"

Miranda looked away. "I'm hardly concerned. Just curious."

Jack pursed her full lips. "Nah. What do you think happened last night?"

_We finally had the sex i've been dreaming about for the past two months. _Miranda thought. "Nothing."

"Then get the hell out of here."

Miranda did as advised and returned to her office. She flopped down on her office chair and sighed. She decided to get a concrete answer on this issue and did what she didn't have the courage to do earlier. "EDI." she called out.

"Yes?"

"Play the surveillance footage from last night in my office on my private terminal."

Her console lit up as footage of her empty room appeared in front of her. She scrubbed through the video before all of a sudden she saw herself stumble into her officer in the early hours of the morning. She watched herself drunkenly twirl around her office before unzipping her suit and letting it fall to the ground. Miranda cringed as she watched herself stroll about in her underwear alone calling out Jack's name as she unclipped her bra and tossed it aside before stepping out of her panties and shooting them like a slingshot to the opposite side of the room. She collapsed on the bed and began vigorously masturbating. Miranda instantly shut off the video. "EDI delete all this footage."

"Yes, Operative Lawson." EDI replied.

Instead of the relief she should feel Miranda was disappointed. She was hit with a suppressed feeling of loneliness. She sighed and buried her face in her hands. She had been alone for years, but recently it had been unusually painful. She was adept at working alone but she was beginning to realize she didn't enjoy being alone as much as she used to. "EDI?" she called out again.

"Yes?"

"Where is Shepard?"

"The Commander is in her cabin."

Miranda rose to her feet. Shepard may be ridiculous and too friendly for her own good, but right now Miranda hated to admit that maybe she needed a friend.

* * *

**Notes- So I wrote this simply because I can't sleep as usual. Nothing special but I wanted to show Miranda starting to be friends with Shepard. So I think I will focus a bit on that if I ever decide to form this series into an actual story. Also I just like writing Ice Queen Miranda. **


	5. Jack and Shepard: Poetry

Poetry had been a secret passion of hers for years, but after years of reading she finally decided to try her hand at writing. Maybe it was the boredom of sitting around in the empty sub deck every day, or maybe it was something else. But Jack finally found the motivation to try. She finished writing the final line and decided reading her work aloud before submitting it to the extranet might be a good idea.

"My soul, Burns, With a fire of darkness, Quenched only in the pain, Of loneliness" She said quietly to herself. "I hold my breath waiting, Until spots appear black as the past, And fill my lungs up with lies of hope" Suddenly Jack hears a foot step and looks up mortified to find the Commander watching her with a stupid grin on her face. "What the fuck?!" she screams and Shepard throws up her hands.

"I'm sorry! I was coming by to talk and I heard…"

"Fuck, you heard?" Jack rises to her feet with biotics flaring.

"It's alright, Jack."

"Breath one word of this and I will kick your ass!"

"I thought it was good." Shepard says sincerely.

Jack's biotics sizzle out and she arches an eyebrow. "What?"

"I said it was good. I liked it."

"What the fuck do you know?"

"About poetry? Nothing. But I'd like to hear the rest."

"Bullshit."

"Seriously."

Jack scans the woman up and down. This is some fucking trick. It always is. Nobody gives a shit about the stuff she cares about, they never have. Even Shepard just wants something from her. But the woman seems to be sincere. "What are you after?"

Jane sighs. "Jack, I'm not after anything."

"Cut the crap, Shepard. You're always down here asking me about that damn asari of yours or drilling me for conversation."

"I already told you, I like you."

"Nobody 'Likes' me. They use me to get what they need and then they bail. You're not any different. Only reason i'm here is because of my damn biotics. So quit messing around with me and just leave me alone." Jack flops back down on her cot and faces her back to Shepard.

Shepard slowly approaches her. "Jack, I'm trying here."

"Stop trying. I don't need you Shepard. I don't need anyone."

"You want me to leave? Fine." Shepard turns to go.

Jack sits up and as she watches her walk away something deep inside her makes her call for Shepard that she doesn't understand. "Wait!"

Jane is surprised to hear the convict call after her and turns. "Yeah?"

"You…really thought it was good?"

Shepard smiles and approaches her side again. "I did."

"Don't bullshit me."

"I'm not bullshitting you. I'd like to hear the rest."

Jack is silent for a while before she quietly resumes her poem. "I mark myself, Black and jagged, To cover the scars" she looks up to see if Shepard is still listening and Jane nods at her to continue. "That make me a monster, A warning, This is not a place of honor, No esteemed dead are buried here" She finishes and looks back up to Shepard who grinning down at her.

"Beautiful." Shepard says.

"It's not."

"I thought so."

Jack gets to her feet and closes the gap between them. "Level with me. Are you just down here cause you want to fuck me or something? Cause I don't roll that way."

Jane laughs. "No. I'm down here cause i'm your friend."

Friend? Jack doesn't have friends. Why is this woman so hellbent on being nice to her? It's annoying but part of Jack is enjoying it. She has to admit she's getting soft on the Commander. The convict smiles. "You're alright, Shepard."

The commander puts one hand on her hip. "Is that your way of saying you like me?" she says sarcastically.

Jack returns her joking tone. "Shut up."

"I actually came down here to tell you something."

Jack rolls her eyes. "You finally got shit straight with your asari?"

"I wish. No, I'm setting the Normandy on course for Pragia."

"Really?"

"I told you I would. I'm a woman of my word."

"I owe you."

Shepard chuckled. "Is that so? Well I'm meeting Liara on Illium tomorrow to apologize for the other night. You mind telling me which dress I look better in up in my cabin?"

Jack groans in disgust. "Are you kidding me?"

"Tali is busy, Miranda's pissed at me because I told you about the whole masturbating thing. And Samara is…weird. I need a woman's opinion."

Jack laughs. "Fine."

* * *

**Notes- **So as with the last chapter i'm writing this because of my insomnia so it's probably total crap as it's 5 am when i'm submitting this. Oh and the poem is taken from the Shadow Broker files on Jack so I didn't write it, credit to whoever from Bioware came up with it. Halfway through the final Veiled Asari chapter. Making sure it's the best I can make it so i'm sorry for the delay.


	6. Shepard and Liara: Hamster Talk

Liara waited In Shepard's cabin while the human took a shower, her blue eyes fixated on the large aquarium in front of her. She watched the various fish swim about randomly and couldn't help but smile. When she first met the dashing human spectre on Therum she never would have pegged her for an animal lover. She spends so much time with the Commander but rarely finds herself in the Captain's Cabin. She relishes the opportunity to see more of Shepard the woman as opposed to the mask she puts on for others. Since Jane had become the first person she joined with it felt like they had precious little time to be together. At least one positive came out of this Reaper invasion she thought.

It had been almost a month since the Reapers hit Earth and already she could see the cracks in Shepard's armor beginning to form. She doesn't know what she has to say to the human but has a feeling it will come to her once she's done in the shower. She just hopes her visit will not be an unpleasant surprise.

T'Soni strolled over to Shepard's desk and saw a lone datapad resting on a small stack of papers. Her curiosity got the better of her and she powered on the device. A text log flickered on to the screen. Liara didn't know Shepard kept a journal. She knew she had no business reading her private log like this, then again reading private things was her job, and she and Shepard had joined minds multiple times. Surely she could read one journal entry.

* * *

_I'm back on the Normandy. That doctor the brass had me see back in Vancouver said that keeping a journal would help me with my problems. The poor doctor is probably nothing but a pile of ash now. I don't see how writing down anything will help me. The Reapers are still harvesting the galaxy, millions of innocent lives are still being lost. Lives I can't save. I guess that's what I can't stand the most. Logically I know I can't save them all, but that doesn't mean I can sleep any easier. Haven't been sleeping well, or sleeping at all for that matter. It's worse than I could have ever imagined. The crew looks to me like I know what I'm doing. Everybody seems to look at me like that these days. Truth is I don't have a clue, and I'm just as scared as everyone else. I'm not about to give up, I can't. But I don't see how anyone could save us from this, let alone me. _

_At least Liara is here. Having her by my side makes facing all this bearable. Back in basic, they used to ask us what we were fighting for. I used to just say for Humanity. Now the only answer that comes to mind is her. I couldn't do this without her. I just hope everyone can hold out long enough for me to figure out what the hell i'm supposed to do. Just keep fighting I guess. At least I'm good at that._

* * *

Liara powers off the device and her heart felt heavy. Having Shepard in charge of all this had made her feel safe but learning that Jane was just as terrified as she was. A little bit of her hope died. At least Shepard seemed to still feel the same way about her. She had been so horrible to her back on Illium. Sometimes she wondered what the human saw in her at all. But recently all she wants to do is be held by the the Commander. And she wishes she hadn't been so stupid back then and just gone with her.

Liara jumped when the shower door snapped open behind her and she yelped before turning around. Shepard had a towel wrapped around her wet body and she looked equally surprised but her naked body wasn't what caught Liara's attention. Shepard's eyes were red and Jane quickly wiped what appeared to be tears away. She cleared her throat. "Liara," her voice cracked. "This is a surprise."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to intrude I just... never mind." Liara turned to leave and Shepard caught her arm.

"No, please stay."

Liara's eyes dropped before she looked up to meet the green eyes of her Commander. "I came by to check up on you."

Jane cracked a half smile. "That's sweet. But I'm fine. You don't need to worry about me. Alright?"

"Alright."

"What about you?"

Liara smiled. "I've been better, Shepard. But I suppose we all have."

"Let me get dressed and why don't we talk."

"About?"

Jane shrugged. "Anything. I'd just like to spend time with you right now. That is if you want to as well."

"Sounds perfect." Liara said.

The asari turned her back to the human as she dropped her towel and changed into a fresh set of BDUs. Shepard chuckled. "You can turn around now."

Liara moved to inspect the tiny hamster Shepard housed on her desk shelving. "A hamster?" she asked lightheartedly.

Shepard shrugged. "Yeah." she made her way by her side and fished the animal out of it's cage to cradle in her strong hands delicately. "Kinda cute isn't he?"

"Very." Liara agreed. "Does he have a name?"

Jane's face twisted. "Never really thought about it. How bout Hank?"

Liara giggled. "Hank?"

"Sure. He looks like a Hank." Hank the hamster rolled around in the human's hands and she stroked his fur with one of her thumbs. "Sometimes I'm jealous of Hank."

"Oh?"

"He's got no idea the hell the rest of the galaxy is enduring. To him nothing is different. Ignorance is bliss I guess."

Liara wrapped her hand around Shepard's arm. "Yes, I suppose it is."

"Can I ask you something, Liara?"

"Of course."

Jane continued petting the tiny hamster. "Do you really think we can do this? That I can do this?"

"There's nobody else I could trust with the job more."

"We're putting everything in this Protheon device. All I can do is tell everyone it's the way we end this war. But I don't really know that."

"The galaxy needs hope. Now more than ever. That's what you do, Shepard. You give them hope. You give me hope."

Shepard smiled and returned Hank to his cage. "Same goes for you, Liara."

* * *

**Notes- ****Finally got some Shepard and Liara in this series. Sorry I jumped to ME3 but I will probably be jumping around in the timeline a lot with this series. I will still return to the ME2 Jack/Miranda plot but I wanted to do some FemShep and Liara stuff. Hope you enjoyed it. Since Veiled Asari ****finally wrapped it's time I announce my next series. I'm thinking of skipping my previously announced High School Reunion story for now in favor of "Shepard and Liara Versus the Alliance" I simply have more ideas for it now than I do for High School Reunion but I will hopefully come back to it later. So you can expect chapter 1 soon. **


	7. Miranda and Shepard: Massage

Miranda Lawson sat in the mess and ate her dinner alone like always. She was used to the solitary at this point however the way the two crew members sitting at the table got up to leave when she sat down hurt. Not that you'd ever know it from looking at her. For as long as she could remember people generally didn't like her. She was just fine with that because she generally didn't like them back. Still it would be nice to have dinner with someone for a change.

Shepard made her way into the mess with a hand rubbing her neck as she winced in pain. The Commander nodded at the Cerberus operative and rolled her eyes when Miranda didn't respond. Jane grabbed a handful of energy bars, the calories would help after the biotics she had to throw out back on Horzion. Jane sat down across from the raven haired woman. "You know one of these days you're gonna give me a real conversation."

"Why do you care so much about getting to know me, Shepard? We've spoken enough."

"I like to know my crew."

"I don't like people knowing me."

Jane groaned and took a bite of the first bar. "You seemed to want to discuss something with me the other day."

"It doesn't matter now." Miranda wished she hadn't brought that up. After a particularly lonely day she had attempted to reach out to her Commander for companionship. A mistake she didn't intend on making again.

Jane eyed the woman's empty tray. "You sure? I got time now."

"I'm sure." They sat in silence before that misguided need for companionship crept back in to Miranda. "Is there...something you want to talk about?"

"Actually yes." Shepard moved her head up and winced in pain. "Ow!" she cried.

"Something wrong, Commander?"

"Damn Husk got me good down on Horizon. My neck has a hell of a knot in it."

"I may be able to help. And if you wanted to speak with me why don't you come into my cabin?" Miranda said.

Jane arched an eyebrow. But she wasn't about to shut down the rare friendliness. "Sure." she said and left her meal behind as she followed Lawson into her cabin. "So you have any pain meds or something?"

"I was thinking more like a massage." Miranda said.

"Oh!" Shepard hadn't expected that. "Uh...alright."

Miranda gestured to the chair behind her desk. "Sit" she ordered.

Jane did as commanded. "You're unusually neighborly today, Miranda."

Lawson stretched her fingers out before she began to go to work on her Commander's pained neck. "I'll admit, Shepard. I've been thinking about what you said."

"I say a lot of things."

"About needing a friend."

"I see."

"God, that sounded so pathetic. I apologize. I'm not used to feeling like this."

Jane moaned as Miranda's fingers dug into her and she was pleasantly surprised to find Miranda was very good at massages. "It's alright. I get it Miranda. You're driven and independent. But everyone gets lonely. Been feeling it pretty bad myself lately."

"How do you deal with it?"

Shepard moaned again. "Not very well. You're really good at this."

Miranda smiled. "I'm good at everything I do, Shepard. I have to be."

"Why?'

"I was engineered to be perfect. What use would I be if I wasn't?"

"Nobody is perfect. And you need to try and do something for yourself for a change."

Miranda admired how pretty the woman was. She wasn't attracted to Shepard but since confronting her sexuality she had realized how striking the Commander was. It made her jealous, almost everything about Shepard made her jealous. She was beautiful, people actually liked her, and she was every bit the hero people made her out to be. All of that without having to be engineered. But that wasn't her fault. "Like what?"

"I don't know. What do you like to do to relax?"

"I used to love playing the violin."

Shepard closed her eyes as she continued to enjoy Miranda's hands on her neck. "Why don't you have one on the Normandy?"

"There are much more important things for me to be doing. I'm not here to enjoy myself. Neither are you."

Jane chuckled. "I'm enjoying myself now. When did you learn this?"

"Ages ago."

"Well I appreciate it. And just because we have a mission doesn't mean you can't relax."

"That's just it, Shepard. I don't know how. Father never really gave me any chance to relax, even learning the violin had been one of his commands. The man was so bloody obsessed with perfecting me everything had to be done right. At least I enjoyed playing. After I joined Cerberus there wasn't much more time to relax than there was with Father. I'm not used to all the down time we have between missions. I don't like it."

"Between the two of us. I hate it. The only time I feel like I'm where I belong is when i'm getting shot at. Fighting has always been what i'm good at. But I think we can survive a little boredom."

Miranda smirked. "I guess we can. You said you wanted to talk about something?"

"It's about Horizion."

Lawson dug her thumbs deep into the flesh of Jane's necks and circled them. "Let me guess, It's about that Alenko man."

"Good guess. He used to be a good friend. But I get the impression our friendship is ancient history now. I was wondering how you deal with working for Cerberus."

"I don't concern myself with what others think of Cerberus. I believe in what the organization stands for and that's good enough for me."

Jane grunted. "I guess I have to admire your loyalty. But you've never wondered if you were doing the wrong thing?"

"Have you?"

"More times than I care to admit."

"Like when?"

"Akuze...I got my entire squad killed, and the Alliance promoted me for it. Accepting that promotion never felt like the right thing to me. But I still did it."

Miranda's voice was soft when she spoke. "For what it's worth, Shepard. When I was assigned to the Lazerous project I read everything there was to read about you. I know you better than I know anyone else."

"That's a little creepy." Shepard joked.

"What I'm trying to say is, what happened on Akuze wasn't your fault." Miranda said as he finished the Commander's massage.

Jane rose from her seat rubbing her neck. "Sure as hell feels like my fault. But thanks."

"How's the neck?"

Shepard smiled. "Much better."

"Perfect."

"Thanks, Miranda."

"My pleasure, Shepard. Didn't bring you back just to have a neck pain get you killed."

Jane chuckled. "And here I thought you were helping me out as a friend. See ya around." and with that Shepard left Miranda's office.

_Friends. _Shepard had to have said that word on purpose to make Miranda feel better. But that didn't mean it didn't work. Lawson smiled and sat down at her desk. Her jealousy for the Commander was beginning to turn into unmistakable admiration.

* * *

**Notes- And insomnia creates yet another chapter! Hopefully I can get the first chapter of "Shepard and Liara Versus the Alliance" out ****tomorrow night. And since there's no reason to hide it I guess I should announce Miranda and Jack will be starring alongside Shepard and Liara in that episode. In fact I'd say it's equal parts Shepard/Liara and Jack/Miranda and I think you guys will like it. I hope you guys are having an awesome day! **


	8. Miranda and Shepard: Goodbye

Miranda Lawson watched the clock on her terminal. In all her years working for Cerberus she's never felt this way about an operation coming to a close. Even though this was no longer a Cerberus operation and she was no longer a Cerberus operative, nor was she the same woman who first stepped foot on the Normandy all those months back. But now the Collectors were defeated and the Reapers dealt with, for now at least. And the Normandy SR2 was fast approaching the Alliance's impressive Arcturus station so that Commander Shepard could formally surrender herself into their custody following the events in the Bahak system.

But even after all the people she's met, worked with or even had to kill Miranda Lawson has never felt this way about a partnership ending. The former Cerberus operative was sad. She knew she was going to miss Shepard. When she first began working for the Commander she found her insufferable. She never understood why the woman insisted on being her friend in the early days. Then after Shepard had helped her save Oriana, Miranda realized she didn't understand why she was so opposed to the idea.

The Commander was everything they said she was and more. And after months serving with her Miranda was proud to call her a friend. And unlike Nekett, Shepard was someone she could rely on. She was someone she trusted. Lawson rubbed her tired eyes in her palms and rose from her seat. She had to see the Commander before Joker brought the Normandy into dock.

Outside her office she was surprised to see Jack sitting alone in the mess. Most of the crew had already left and Miranda was shocked that Jack had decided to stay as long as she had. Outside of the Cerberus crew, the Turian and Joker everyone else had already gone. When Lawson looked at the convict's face she didn't see her usual anger however in fact she looked as sad as Miranda. Jack's eyes caught Miranda and the tattooed woman rolled her eyes and flashed her middle finger at the raven haired woman. Miranda just chuckled when she realized she was even going to miss Jack. Although she was looking forward to putting an end to her confusing dreams that always starred the convict. Indeed her attraction to the bald woman had only grown in the past few months but soon it would be in the past.

Miranda sat down across from Jack, Shepard could wait a little longer. "What the hell do you want, Cheerleader?" Jack asked with her usual bite.

"Came by to say my farewells."

"Save it."

"Come on, Jack. I know we haven't got along very well but we made a pretty good team. Even you can admit that."

Jack's lips perked up in a half smile that vanished almost instantly. "Maybe."

Miranda extended her hand to the woman. "Goodbye, Jack. I wish you luck with whatever comes next."

Jack slapped her hand away. "Go fuck yourself, Cerberus bitch."

Miranda chuckled to herself as Jack left her alone in the abandoned mess hall. "I don't know what I expected." she said to herself as she rose from her seat.

She moved from the elevator and stopped when the lift's doors slid open and Jacob Taylor stepped out. "Hey, Miranda." Jacob said.

"Jacob." she said cooly.

"I guess this is it for the Normandy, huh."

"I suppose it is."

Jacob offered his hand and Miranda shook it. "It's always interesting to work with you."

"And you."

"Hey listen, now that we got some time off I was thinking..."

Miranda cut him off. "Jacob, let me stop you."

"Alright."

"I'm gonna tell you something i've never told anyone else."

Jacob's eyebrows rose as Miranda stepped in the lift. "Okay."

"I'm a lesbian." She said before hitting the captain's cabin on the lift display and leaving Jacob behind with a shocked expression plastered on his face. Miranda smirked as the elevator rose.

Shepard's door slid open automatically and Miranda found her sitting on her bed wearing her freshly pressed dress blues. Jane's head was hanging low and she looked up when she heard Miranda's high heels click on the steel floor.

"Hey Miranda. Here to say goodbye?" Shepard asked. Her voice was much softer than Miranda had ever heard it.

Miranda nodded. "I am."

Shepard didn't rise from her seat so Miranda joined her side on the bed. "You did good work here Lawson. I'm proud of you."

Miranda smiled. "I wanted to thank you, Commander."

"Thank me?"

"For everything you've done for me. Saving my sister, saving the bloody galaxy and for...everything else."

Shepard smiled warmly and patted Lawson on the back. "You don't need to thank me, Miranda. You brought me back to life, I don't think we'll ever be even."

"We're even, Shepard."

"What will you do now?" Shepard asked.

Miranda sighed. "For once in my life I'm not really sure. I'm certainly done with Cerberus, I can't imagine the Illusive Man will be too happy with me so perhaps I will lay low for a while. Figure out a way to help prepare for the Reapers. Maybe I'll spend some time with Oriana."

"Well I wish you luck."

"I have a feeling I may need it."

Jane elbowed her playfully. "Nah, you'll be just fine. If there's one thing i've learned about you Miranda it's that you can pretty much do anything."

"I'm not sure I'd say that." Miranda said before both woman rose to their feet. Lawson snapped a salute to her. "It was an honor, Commander. I'm proud to call you a friend"

Shepard returned the salute. "Like wise." Jane opened her omni-tool. "Hey you know i've been taking a picture with every crew member before they leave. You mind?"

"Not at all."

A small camera VI was projected in front of the two woman. Miranda stiffened her posture and placed her hands behind her back but she loosened up when she felt Jane wrap and arm around her shoulders. "Smile." Shepard said and so she did. The flash went off and Shepard checked the picture on her device. "Looks good. Thanks."

Miranda offered her hand to the woman. "Goodbye, Shepard."

Jane suddenly embraced her. "I'm gonna miss you, Miranda."

Lawson wrapped her arms around Jane too. "Until next time, Commander."

They separated from the embrace and Shepard nodded. "Yeah, until next time."

* * *

**Notes- For some reason I felt like doing some parting ways chapters for this series so I hope you liked Miranda's. I have plans to do a Jack one too and maybe Garrus. The next chapter of Shepard and Liara Versus the Alliance is coming along. It just might take a bit because writing a scene that features 6 characters is a challenge. Tell me what you thought in the reviews!**


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